Navigating the gaming landscape

A review of recent industry trends

Image credit: Image Creator from Microsoft Designer/DALL.E and Canva

Today, I came across a long essay (about 14,000 words) on recent gaming industry trends by Matthew Ball, the CEO of holding company Epyllion.

Here are some key highlights:

• In 2023, the gaming industry experienced significant success with notable game releases and advancements in hardware. Key releases included titles like Alan Wake 2, Armored Core VI, Baldur’s Gate 3, Diablo IV, and others. Hardware constraints eased, allowing widespread availability of Generation 9 consoles and top-of-the-line graphics cards. Meta's Quest 3, Valve's updated Steam Deck, and PlayStation's VR 2 were among the hardware highlights.

• Major gaming platforms like Roblox and Fortnite saw substantial growth in users and revenue.

• Netflix considered evolving its gaming offering amid changes in the streaming landscape.

• In the realm of intellectual property, gaming thrived in various media. The Super Mario Bros. Movie was a box office hit, surpassing Detective Pikachu's record for a video game adaptation. The Last of Us adaptation received Emmy nominations, and other game-based series like Twisted Metal found success. 

• Video games also played a role in revitalizing non-gaming IP, with Hogwarts Legacy outselling Harry Potter films, and Baldur’s Gate 3 outperforming its film counterpart.

• Last year, a staggering 10,500 game developers, artists, testers, and other gaming industry professionals faced layoffs, surpassing the previous record set in 2022 with 8,500 job losses. The trend has persisted into 2024, witnessing 3,800 cuts within just 22 days.